Want to read more research into the working conditions of Queensland teachers?

Queensland's NAPLAN scores have improved 2008-2017.

When NAPLAN testing began in 2008, Queensland was second-last of all the Australian states, with only the Northern Territory reporting worse results.

In August 2017 -

About 95% of Queensland Year 3's achieved at or above the national minimum standards across all five test areas.

The proportion of Queensland students in the upper two bands was the highest the state has achieved.

Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority chief executive Robert Randall said Queensland's improvements in general results were the best in the country, only comparable to Western Australia, which also saw gains.

But -

Writing skills remain poor in 2017, with Queensland Year 7 and Year 9 students recording the lowest results on record.

In Year 9, about 21 per cent of students were below the minimum national standard in writing - the worst results since testing began in 2008.

In Year 7, about 13.6 per cent of Queensland students are below the national minimum standard for writing.

Indigenous leader Noel Pearson has championed the introduction of Direct Instruction at his Cape York Academy, which operates three public primary schools at Aurukun, Coen and Hope Vale in partnership with Queensland's Education Department.

NAPLAN data reveals a significant improvement in the basic skills of the Academy's Year 3 students.

Although the children still lag behind the national average for reading, grammar and punctuation and numeracy, they now exceed the average for comparable schools.

In Coen, 32 out of 50 students have achieved their grade level in reading.

"I think that it is important to get it on the record that 99 per cent of students in (Queensland) state schools are good students," Ms Jones said.

Robina Cosser says : Really, Ms Jones?

On what research do you base your statement?

Because that is not what teachers are telling me.

And I don't think it is what most Queensland students, teachers and principals would tell you.

So who are you talking to?

Who is telling you these porkies that you want on the official record of the budget estimates hearing, Ms Jones?

Or have you just made up this statistic because making up this sort of re-assuring statistic is easier than dealing with the 1500 Queensland state school students who have assaulted their teachers in the past 15 months?

More than 1500 Queensland students were suspended or expelled for assaulting their teachers during the 15 months between 15 January 2015 and March 2016.

174 of the assaulted teachers made WorkCover claims.

Deputy director-general of Education, Patrea Walton, said the figures included teachers and staff who "may be assaulted in the course of trying to support a student with complex and challenging behaviours".

76 per cent of Queensland schools have some maths and science teachers who are not fully qualified.

The Australian Education Union's 2016 State of Our Schools Report surveyed more than 1000 principals and 7000 teachers across Australia.

76 per cent of Queensland principals who took part in the survey reported that some maths and science classes at their schools were taught by teachers who were not fully qualified in those specialist subject areas - 20 per cent above the national average.

Queensland lagged significantly behind other Australian states when it came to attracting specialist maths and science teachers.

Queensland Education Minister Kate Jones said she now planned to bring talented science, technology, engineering and maths teachers to Queensland from other countries.

The number of Year 12's heading into teaching courses in Queensland has dropped by 15 per cent this year - the biggest fall in a steady decline since 2013.

Year 12 maths and science became compulsory prerequisites this year.

The number of Year 12 leavers getting into teaching since 2013 has dropped by 20 per cent -

More than 1950Year 12 students received a place in 2015.

Just over 1650 Year 12 students received a place in 2016.

Queensland Secondary Principal's Association (QSPA) president Andrew Pierpoint said there were several factors, including potential teachers not wanting to travel to rural and remote schools and the "competitive" career market.

340 Queensland teachers and schools ask for state cyber expert help in dealing with on-line defamation in 2014-15.

During 2013-1014 the Queensland state cyber-safety teams were called in to deal with 322 incidents of students using social media (usually Facebook or Instagram) to ruin the reputation of schools and teachers.

During 2014-15, the team were called in to deal with almost 340 cases.

What OP score do Queensland students need to achieve in order to be accepted into an education course at UNI?

The 2013 QTAC university guide reveals that for teacher education the Queensland-specific median OP score is 14 for entry in 2013 while the range is 10 to 18.

"My concern is that teaching is a far more important profession than the others and should require a considerably higher entry score," says Dr Tor Hundloe, professor of environmental management and science at Bond University.

The Queensland Labor government said in 2002 that it was planning to boost the percentage of men in teaching. How did that plan work out?

In 2002 21.4 per cent of state primary school teachers were male.

In 2011 18.1 per cent of state primary school teachers were male.

In 2002 42.4 per cent of state high school teachers were male.

In 2011 39.5 per cent of state high school teachers were male.

Why don't men want to be teachers?

a) Because they are afraid that a child, a parent or a malicious school principal will make a false allegation against them and destroy their lives. Education Queensland director-general Julie Grantham told a public lecture at QUT in February 2012 that there was "a terrible connotation" in connection with young children and males in the community.

b) Because they can make more money in mining.

c) Because they will be stuck in casual work for so many years after graduating and won't be able to get a mortgage or support their family properly.

Men turn from teaching, Tanya Chilcott, P.12, The Courier-Mail, 27 March 2012.

How many Queensland police officers have been assaulted in Queensland schools?

26 Queensland police officers have been assaulted at Queensland schools during the past five years.

"Violence has been out of control (and) criminals are getting younger and younger," Queensland Police Union president Ian Leavers said.

How do the lowest ten per cent of Queensland students compare with the lowest ten per cent in other states? Why don't we compare the highest ten per cent of students?

Figures released on 9 September 2011 by the national body behind the National Assessment Program for Literacy and Numeracy showed Queensland remained in sixth position overall but Queensland's students notched up better scores than in previous years in many categories.

Queensland students in Year 3 and 5 are performing below the national average in all categories.

90.8 per cent of Queensland Year 3 students reached the national minimum standard in reading, compared with the national average of 92.8 per cent.

95.2 per cent of Year 3 students achieved the national standard for numeracy, compared with the 95.7 per cent national average.

Queensland Year 3 students also recorded results below the national average in reading, writing, grammar and punctuation, but they performed better than in previous years.

Year 7 pupils achieved above-average results in two of the five tests.

91.2 per cent of Year 7 students achieved the national standard for writing, compared with the 90.7 per cent national average.

94.5 per cent of Year 7 students achieved the national standard compared with 94.4 per cent average.

However, they were below average in reading, spelling, and grammar and punctuation.

Comparisons between the results of different states are based on what percentage of students reached the national minimum standards in five categories – reading, writing, spelling, grammar and punctuation, and numeracy.

Editor's Note : So we are comparing the lowest-performing ten per cent of students in all states.

How did our high-achieving students perform compared with those in other states?

Why do we never hear anything about the results of our highest-performing students?

Mr Wilson also said that "every organisation has a process for managing poor performance among workers. It's critical that this process gives workers the opportunity, time and support to improve their performance and increase their skills".

Actually the MUP process seems to be a process that is abused to bully Queensland teachers into ill health and out of work.

The QTU advise classroom teachers who are being bullied with the MUP that there is no hope of justice, that teachers who "fight it" are mentally or physically destroyed, and to "accept the things you cannot change".

I told Anna Bligh about this situation when I met her and Jim Varghese, the Director-General of Education on 23 June 2002.

The MUP seems to be being used to 'pay back' Queensland classroom teachers who report child abuse by other teachers, try to deal with professional issues at their school, refuse to join their principal's branch of the Labor party, etc. etc.

The QTU advised me that anything - or nothing at all - can be 'beaten up' into an excuse to put a Queensland classroom teacher on MUP.

How many Queensland teachers have been "suspended on full pay" during the past two years?

* 95Education Queensland staff were suspended on full pay for some period between 1 january 2008 and 31 January 2010.

* By 31 January 2010,20 Education Queensland employees remained "suspended on full pay".

* It costs Queensland taxpayersmore than $1m a year to keep these Queensland classroom teachers, principals and education officials "suspended on full pay" while waiting for the outcomes of "investigations" into allegations concerning them.

Many of these Queensland teachers may be the innocent victims of "joke", malicious or "payback" allegations concerning them.

The long "investigation" process - and the eventual "return to work" process - is very, very stressful for these Queensland teachers.

The stress of the "investigation process" itself seems to make teachers ill.

The "investigations"can sometimes takemore - much, much more - than two years.

How many Queensland school students had their enrollments cancelled during 2009?

During 2009 it was recommended that -

* 383 Queensland students have their enrollments cancelled.

These students were over 16 years old.

* 864 Queensland students be excluded.

Five of the 864 excluded Queensland students were in Year 1.

More than half of the 864 excluded Queensland students were in Years 9 and 10.

Which seems to suggest that Year 9 and 10 classes in Queensland schools are being very regularly disrupted.

And that this level of disruption must impact on the education of the better behaved students.

School principals win right to expel problem students, Alison Sandy and Tanya Chilcott, The Courier-Mail, 18 December 2009.

How many Queensland teachers made formal complaints about workplace bullying in 2009?

* In 2007, 26 Queensland teachers made formal complaints about the bullying and aggressive behaviour of other teachers (I would presume that these "other teachers" are actually Queensland school principals).

* In 2008, 30 teachers made formal complaints.

* In 2009, 37 teachers made formal complaints ( to November ).

This represents an increase in complaints of more than 40 per cent over the past two years.

And, out of Australia's eight states and territories, Queensland's year 4 students came last in science and 7th in Maths.

"One explanation for Queensland's poor performance is that whereas Queensland's curriculum has been dumbed down, states like NSW and Victoria have kept with an academically rigorous curriculum and competitive testing and assessment," Kevin Donnelly, the director of Melbourne's Education Strategies, said.

"Overseas research argues that stronger performing systems have competitive, external exams at the senior level and high-risk assessment, with clear consequences for failure - both of which Queensland lacks."

Queensland reading, writing and maths results were falling in 2007-8. Was this a result of the lowering of the OP scores for student teachers?

2007-08 State Budget figures show many Queensland students failed to meet national benchmarks for reading, writing and maths from Years 2 to 7.

In 17 of 24 areas scores were down compared with 2006-07.

The worst results were for 11 and 12-year-olds in Year 7.

93.1%of Year 7 students achieved the national benchmark inreading in 2004-05.

81.7%of Year 7 students achieved the national benchmark in reading in 2007-08, a fall of 11.4%.

82.3%of Year 7 students reached the national benchmark inmathsin 2004-05.

73.1% of Year 7 students reached the national benchmark in maths in 2007-08, a fall of 9.2%.

"You can't get much lower than those benchmarks and in reality, somewhere between40and 60%of students entering high school from government, Catholic and independent schools lack sufficient skills to engage with the secondary curriculum," said the Australian Council for Educational Research'sKen Rowe .

"I am also concerned that we are starting to see the effects of falling OP scores for entry to the teaching profession," Opposition Education spokesman Stuart Copelandsaid.

Tony McGruther, of the Queensland Association of State School Principals, said stress was a serious welfare issue for teachers, with some suffering serious mental and physical breakdowns.

Teachers said that they were stressed by conflict with other teachers, students and supervising staff.

"Teachers I have spoken to are gravely concerned about the growing lack of respect from students and the difficulties enforcing discipline in their classrooms," said Opposition education spokesman Stuart Copeland.

Robina Cosser says : Queensland teachers may not be advised by the union or staff welfare oficer to apply for WorkCover when they take sick leave because of stress, particularly if it is the behaviour of another union member that is affecting their health.

So these figures may significantly understate the problem.

Teachers take money and run,Renee Viellaris, The Courier-Mail, November 24, 2007:

How many Queensland school principals may be psychopathic? How does the Education Queensland promotion system protect classroom teachers from workplace abuse by screening out psychopathic wanna-be principals?

Up to 3%of the Australian population is psychopathic, according to Sydney-based psychotherapist and author John Clarke.

About 40,000Queensland teachers are now members of the QTU.

( Report by John Battamsto the QTU conference, June 2007. )

So up to 1200Queensland teachers and administrators may be workplace psychopaths.

Warning over workplace psychopaths, Jade Bilowol, AAP, June 14, 2007

Why do Education Queensland investigations into allegations against teachers take so many years to complete? How many Queensland teachers have allegations hanging over their heads at the moment?

On May 27 2007 an Education Queensland spokesperson stated that there was a backlog of-

James Cook University, Cairns research by Timms, GrahamandCottrellfound that teachers ... sought to establish relationships between workload ..., burnout ... , and engagement with work ... .

High workload correlated negatively with vigour, indicating that this area of worklife impacted on individuals' capacity for resiliance.

However there was also a positive relationship between high workload and absorbtion, indicating perhaps that respondents find their work so intrinsically interesting that they do not notice the passage of time, despite a reported mismatch in workload.

Predicted positive relationships between high workload and the burnout dimensions of exhaustion and disengagement were also supported by significant correlations. ... Consequently it is noted that respondents found that workload constituted the major source of dissatisfaction with their work environment. ...

Participants spoke of their workloads as inexorably and continually increasing ... several participants suggested that in addition to work intensification they also felt pressure to be involved in co-curricular activites ...

Conclusion

While most respondents reported high dedication and absorbtion in their work consistent with a powerful sense of a meaningful and important career, they also revealed a deep and profound sadness.

For many teachers in the current study, their work has assumed (and continues to assume) numerous responsibilities which, of necessity, have to be performed within their own time, thereby severely impacting on their private lives.

Respondents in the current study reported heavy workloads, high exhaustion and low vigour which are indicative of extreme pressure within their workplaces. ...Such findings do not augur well for the continued sustainablity of the profession ...

Pushing the "teachers' work wheelbarrow" : Queensland Independent school teachers and their workloadCarolyn Timms, Deborah Graham and David Cottrell (Psychology, School of Arts and Social Sciences, James Cook University, Cairns, QLD, 4870, Australia)

a quarter (approximately) of the teachers stated that they had taken some stress leave.

one third had sought professional assistance to deal with stress.

... the health effects (including physical, psychological and social negative effects of stress) have been well documented in many studies: social implications alone include declining job satisfaction and teacher-withdrawal-resignation intentions, teacher-reduction in ability to assess and meet the needs of students, increase in days absent, and deterioration in work performance and interpersonal relationships both within and outside the school environment. ...

... it may be concluded that teachers are no more stressed in general than are other professional groups or the general population - except especially in relation to Role Overload. ... This area has ... been identified for more than 25 years as being a source of stress among teachers. ...

Stress among secondary school teachers: teacher-perceptions and questionnaire assessments of occupational stress, Daisuke Fujiwaraand Richard Hicks, published in The Organisational Psychologist, The Newsletter of The College of Organisational Psychologists, December 2006. Enquiries about the article can be addressed to DoctorRichard Hicks, Bond University rhicks@staff.bond.edu.au

Why are women teachers in Queensland being under-promoted compared to women teachers in other states?

According to Catherine Davisthe federal Women's officer for the Australian Education Union,

Queensland has the highest rate of "underpromoted" women teachers.

That is -

in proportion to the teaching workforce numbers, the gap between non-promoted women teachers and promoted women principals is the highest in Australia at 34.3% (the national average is 27.85%).

Catherine Davis ... also highlighted the fact that Queensland has the lowest percentage of female secondary principals in the education workforce ( only 31.42% ).